The scarf was woven on a rigid heddle loom (Ashford), I used a 7.5 dpi (30/10) reed [the blue one that comes with the knitter’s loom]. (That means 7.5 threads per inch.)

I selected Louet mohair for warp and weft. I warped six threads color A (turquoise), skipped 6 spaces (about 1 inch), warped six threads color B (lime), etc. across, ending and beginning with the same color (turquoise). Remember the scarf will shrink during when it comes off the loom and even more after felting so be sure to make it plenty wide. (This scarf was warped at about 13 inches and finished width varies between 5 and 5 ½ inches.)

After the loom was warped, I began weaving in simple tabby weave (over one, under one, over one …) by lifting the reed up and then down. On the first pass, I left a tail of three to four inches. Before the second pass, I looped the end over the last warp thread and then hand wove the tail end following the pattern of the first pass. I then proceeded with the second pass. When I gently beat in the second pass, I locked in the tail between the first and second pass. After completing 10 rows of color A, turquoise (about 1 inch), but before beating the last pass of yarn, I cut a yarn tail three to four inches in length. I looped the tail over the last warp thread and brought it back inside the last pass of yarn following the same pattern as the last pass. I then beat the last pass of yarn gently into place. [Looping and locking the tails eliminated the necessity of later weaving ends in. I did this at the beginning and at the end of each band of color.] Having completed the first color band, I slid in a warp stick to create a gap.

Next, I began weaving with color B, lime. Again when I’d completed 10 rows (about 1 inch), I slid in a second warp stick to create a gap.

I continued by again weaving with color A, turquoise. As I proceeded, I’d slip out the warp stick nearest the front roller and then roll the warp forward.

I had left several inches at the beginning and at the end of my weaving for fringe. I tied a weavers knot, picking up three threads at a time to finish the scarf and secure the weaving from unraveling.

The completed scarf is quite lovely and could easily be simply fulled by carefully immersing it in a bath of cold water and very gently agitating it by hand which will cause the fibers to bond together and create fabric. But …

I laid the woven scarf out carefully in a white towel, making sure no part of the scarf extended beyond the edges of the towel. I rolled the scarf and towel together carefully making sure not to fold the scarf on itself. I then tied the bundle tightly. I placed the bundle in a net laundry bag, the kind used for lingerie and/or sweaters. I threw the bundle in the washer filled with very hot water and allowed it to agitate. It will felt very quickly, you need to check it during the process.

A picture of the finished scarf is on the right. The outcome of felting is unpredictable and that’s the fun of it. No two pieces are ever alike and there may be variations within the same piece. You’ll notice that after felting, the voided areas pulled together creating the lovely scalloped edge.

A scarf created by Jane Patrick, Schacht Spindle Co., was the inspiration for this project. It’s a quick to complete in an afternoon project.

Smooth yarns don’t tend to lend themselves to irregular dent projects because when fulled the definition of individual strands of yarn tend to disappear. It works in this project because it was to be felted and that was the look I was seeking. HOWEVER, handspun singles are perfect for creating fabric utilizing this technique. Even after fabric is fulled (not felted) the individual strands stand out and tend to be well defined. We’ll continue to explore irregular denting in future projects.

The Schacht Spindle Co. 25” rigid heddle loom is being discontinued. As a distributor, I am able to get them at a major discount while they last. They usually sell for $199 but I’m now able to offer them at a GREAT closeout deal until they’re all gone. Schacht Spindle Co. is not going to be manufacturing them anymore but they will continue to support the looms with reeds and other accessories. Click here to CONTACT ME or leave a comment here if you’re interested in buying one at this great price before they disappear.

UPDATE 8/5/08 The rigid heddle looms are sold out. Schacht Spindle Co. has none available and they will no longer be manufacturing their rigid heddle loom due to the popularity of their new flip folding rigid heddle loom. The flip folding loom is a rigid heddle loom BUT it can be folded for easy storeage and easy toting. It can be folded with the warp in place so you can easily transport your project to and from guild meetings, workshops or when you are on the go. Again, as a distributor I’m able to get these for you. So, if you’re interested, click here to CONTACT ME and I’ll help you get one.

For more projects, tips, products, and advice, check our home page by clicking on Seabreeze Spinners.